Research accomplishments 1. We have made significant progress in dissecting the relationship between obesity and epigenetic alterations in the colon that my predispose to cancer. We find that a microbiome specific to obese animals metabolizes an obesogenic diet to produce metabolites that impact the colon epigenome. 2. We have made significant progress in understanding the relationship between cancer-specific mutations found in the transcription factor GATA3 and epigenetic regulation of gene expression that may contribute to breast cancer outcomes. 3. We have made significant progress in understanding the genomic distribution of NuRD complex in breast cancer cells and how this enzyme contributes to the biological program of breast cancer. 4. We have made progress in understanding the role of the de novo DNA methyltransferase DNMT3a in the maintenance of DNA methylation in B lymphocytes.